Catch Me A Catch
by lilyvandersteen
Summary: Blaine is a hard-working pre-law student and part-time barista, whose brother Cooper has snagged a role in Funny Girl. Kurt is a diligent NYADA student and intern at , whose roommate Rachel is the new Fanny Brice. Cooper and Rachel hit it off immediately, and then start scheming to get Kurt and Blaine together.
1. Chapter 1: Unwanted Roommate

**Autor's Note: Please don't hate me for breaking a long posting hiatus with a chapter that is NOT for Weave Your Magic but for an entirely new story... I WILL get back to WYM, I swear, as soon as my muse agrees to cooperate again.**

 **Anyway, this is my contribution to the Blaine Anderson Big Bang, and it's a Klaine story featuring the Anderbros, Hummelberry and a relationship between Rachel and Cooper. I hope you like it! By all means, let me know :-)**

 **Many many thanks to my incomparable beta VoyageAsia, who whipped this story into shape in more ways than one. A huge thank you goes out as well to MyPopCultureSummer, who provided beautiful art for this story (check it out on my Tumblr account, I'm lilyvandersteen there, too).**

Chapter 1: Unwanted Roommate

It all began with Cooper losing his stint on a television programme for having offended a female producer. "And all I said to her was that breast-feeding works wonders after you've given birth to get rid of all the extra pounds you've gained during your pregnancy. How could I have known she wasn't in the family way at all? She looked like she was having twins!"

Pam Anderson patted Cooper's hand comfortingly.

Blaine rolled his eyes but refrained from commenting.

Their father, however, remarked drily, "Well, maybe that will teach you a modicum of discretion and diplomacy. Sometimes it's better NOT to say exactly what goes through your mind. That's a lesson you should have learnt by the age of five at the latest, Cooper. You seem to think that your good looks and your charm will make people forgive you the most outrageous insults."

The rebuke seemed to perplex Cooper, who threw his arms up with the air of a wronged angel and declared that he'd had no intention of insulting anybody. "Why must people be SO sensitive?"

Blaine, whom Cooper had accused of being overly sensitive millions of times, repressed a smile.

 _I'm glad that for once, Coop is feeling the consequences of being too quick to comment. I'm afraid Father's very optimistic about Coop now having learnt his lesson, though. Coop's head and skin are too thick for this incident to curb his tongue._

Blaine looked up from his brunch plate in horrified disbelief, though, when what Cooper said next sank in.

"So I really want to try my hand at Broadway now, and I thought, what better way to acquaint myself with the New York way of life than to immerse myself in it, morning, noon and night? And I have my very own brother to show me around, too. Well, you might not know too much about New York, squirt, seeing as your nose is always buried in a book. But you cook and you clean, so you'll make an ideal roommate, and I can find my own way around New York, no problem."

Blaine stared at Cooper with undisguised horror. "You're… You're coming to live with me, in New York?"

 _Please no! My pre-law studies are hard enough to combine with my barista job! I don't need an annoying big brother shooting my concentration with his loud attention-seeking._

Cooper nodded, beaming. "Won't it be wonderful? Just like old times! You must be so lonely, living there all by yourself. I'll cheer you up no end! That's settled then… When you go back to New York for your sophomore year, I'll be right there by your side!"

 _I'm not lonely. I don't need other people. I like living alone. It's how I was raised, with Mom and Dad barely at home. I've always been by myself, and that's just the way I like it. It keeps me focused on my studies, which I need if I want to take double courses and graduate early._

Blaine looked at his mother and father in a wordless plea for them to dissuade Cooper of this really REALLY bad idea, but they nodded and looked pleased.

"That would be lovely," Pam said. "I've been worried about my little honey bee all alone in New York this year. I know you can look after yourself, sweetie, but you never mention any friends or any parties you go to. You seem so isolated. Cooper will help you with that. He makes friends with everyone, and he'll take you under his wing, won't you, cookie bear?"

Both Blaine and Cooper winced when their mother used their childhood nicknames, but Cooper was quick to plaster his smile on again and promise that he would look after his baby brother to the best of his ability.

Of course, as soon as they were in New York, it proved to be the other way round, as Blaine had feared. Cooper was a terrible slob, leaving take-out cartons and empty soda cans around and never even using a coaster. Blaine had thankfully had the foresight to varnish the dining room table and the coffee table when he arrived in New York the previous year, so they were Cooper-proof already. The other furniture suffered, though, and Blaine had to make it a habit to check for white rings on the wood as soon as he came home from school every day, armed with the hair dryer to limit the damage.

If it had been up to Cooper, he would never have lifted a finger around the house, and Blaine had to threaten him with telling their mother about some of Cooper's exploits from their childhood to get him to help with the dishes and the laundry and the cleaning. "You live here, too, Coop! You can't expect me to do all the work. That's not fair! I already do all the cooking and the grocery shopping. And I have school and a job. You have a lot more time than I do."

"No, I don't!" Cooper protested vehemently. "I'm running here, there and everywhere to audition, all day long, and when I'm not auditioning, I'm training my voice or doing method acting exercises."

Blaine raised an eyebrow, unimpressed. "Well, right now I'm assigning you the method acting exercise of being a helpful brother. That will be a stretch, I know, but I'm sure you can manage if you really apply yourself."

Blaine handed Cooper a towel. "I'll wash, you dry."

Cooper grumbled "Slave driver!" under his breath, but dutifully reached for the plates that were already in the drying rack.

K&B

It was already November, and Blaine had been quietly despairing of his brother ever getting a job, when on a cold and snowy Friday, Cooper stormed into the apartment yelling "I got the part! I got the part!"

Blaine, who'd been working on an essay at his desk in the living room, looked up, startled. Cooper tugged Blaine off his chair and hugged him, picking him up and swinging him around as though Blaine was a five-year-old. Blaine's reading glasses slipped off his nose, and he shivered as the snow covering Cooper's coat seeped through his sweater.

"Coop, please! Take off your coat and your shoes at the door. You're leaving snow trails all over the floor, and I've only just mopped yesterday!"

"I got the part, squirt!" Cooper repeated.

"Brilliant!" Blaine replied tersely. "Now take off your shoes and leave them on the mat, and take off your coat and hang it up properly. Once that is done, you can tell me all about the part you got."

"Spoilsport!" Cooper grumbled, but he took his shoes and coat off and put them on the mat and the hat rack, as instructed.

Blaine put his reading glasses neatly in their case and turned around to face his brother again. "Okay. Tell me all about it!"

Apparently, Cooper's wild dreams of becoming a big Broadway star were about to become reality, as he had been cast as Nicky Arnstein in a new production of Funny Girl.

"That's wonderful," Blaine enthused. "So who's playing Fanny Brice?

Cooper shrugged. "A complete unknown. Her name is Rachel, and she's still in school. NYADA. Sings well, though. And recognised me from the commercials, so she's a fan. Said her roommate used to have the jingle as his ringtone."

Cooper preened when he said that last bit, and Blaine rolled his eyes. "I can't say much for their taste in ringtones. That jingle was beyond annoying."

Cooper stuck his tongue out at Blaine. "You're just jealous that I'm famous and you're not."

Blaine raised an eyebrow. "Am I really?"

Cooper let out an exasperated huff. "No, you're a cold fish who doesn't even get properly excited when his own brother snags a lead role on Broadway!"

Blaine smiled and tackled Cooper in a hug. "It's amazing, and I'm really happy for you, Coop. Though technically, Fanny Brice is the lead role in Funny Girl, not Arnstein."

Blaine chuckled as Cooper cuffed the back of his head, and went back to his neglected essay.


	2. Chapter 2: Roommate Wanted

**Author's Note: As usual, I'm switching between Blaine's and Kurt's point of view. So here's Kurt :-)**

Chapter 2: Roommate Wanted

It all began with an ad on the NYADA bulletin board. Right smack in the middle of sign-up sheets for Adam's Apples, The Improv Masters and the Shakespeare Revival Club, there was a bright pink announcement that Rachel Berry was looking for a roommate. ASAP. No smoking, no drinking, no drugs, no girlfriends or boyfriends allowed to come over unless approved in advance, no noise after 10 PM. Preferably vegetarians or vegans. Serious applicants could reach Rachel between 6.30 and 8.00 AM or between 6.30 and 8.00 PM.

Jean-Baptiste saw where Kurt was looking, and snorted. "Good luck to the poor girl or guy who gets saddled with her. I hate the NYADA dorms, but I prefer them to shacking up with Rachel Berry. Ugh. She's a nightmare!"

Kurt hummed in agreement. Rachel was bossy and a know-it-all and projected an air of superiority. She was every teacher's pet - except for Cassandra July. Word had it that she had offended Cassie during her very first dancing lesson, and Cassie was nothing if a champion grudge-holder.

No, Rachel wouldn't make a perfect roommate, of that Kurt was sure. And yet…

Kurt re-read the announcement. Rachel's apartment was ideally situated. Kurt had been a late entry at NYADA and so he'd had to settle for the dorms furthest away from school. It was quite a commute, and it was even further away from Vogue, where he had an internship. Rachel, though, lived practically next door to school, and Kurt would be able to go the Vogue headquarters on foot from there as well.

Jean-Baptiste had already walked on, and a cursory look around proved that no-one was paying attention to Kurt. Quick as a flash, Kurt tore off one of the bright pink slips with Rachel's phone number and put it in his wallet.

That evening, promptly at 6.30 PM, Kurt called Rachel, and after a thorough interrogation, she told him to come over the next day at 6.30 PM to see the apartment and to discuss the terms.

Accordingly, Kurt rang the bell a day later, and was ushered in by a beaming Rachel. "Come on in! Now… I'll show you around first, and tell you the house rules while doing so, and then afterwards we can have a chat to get to know each other better."

Rachel tugged Kurt along to the bedrooms. The first one was decorated in garish pinks and purples, a room as loud as its owner. "This one is mine!"

 _Oh really? Now that comes as a surprise… Not!_

The guest room, thankfully, was painted in neutral colours, and the furniture and bedspread didn't hurt Kurt's eyes to look at. Everything was neat and clean, the closet was way bigger than the one in his dorm room, and he'd have a lovely view from his window. The room didn't seem draughty in the least, unlike the NYADA dorms, which required an extra sweater and even a coat on the coldest days.

Rachel let Kurt inspect the room and the adjoining bathroom thoroughly, and then took him to the kitchen, the living room and the utility room.

 _Wow. Rachel even has her very own washing machine and dryer. That's it. I don't care how obnoxious she is. If I can avoid Laundromats ruining my clothes for the rest of my time at NYADA, that's worth living with Rachel for._

Rachel, meanwhile, was prattling on and on about visiting days and hours for boyfriends or girlfriends and shelves she'd clear for him in the fridge and in the kitchen cabinets and even acceptable evening entertainment - _What?_ \- and voice and yoga exercises she did in the morning. "Feel free to join me!"

 _Okay… First things first._

"Um, Rachel…" Kurt tried to worm his way into the conversation.

Rachel, now talking about the special tea she drank - with lemon, to keep her vocal chords happy, and under no circumstance was Kurt to steal her tea - was interrupted halfway a sentence, but didn't seem offended. She shut up immediately and cocked her head to the side. "Yes?"

"First of all, I'm not in a relationship, so you don't have to worry about visiting hours. I… I prefer to focus on my education, for now."

Rachel's blinding smile in reaction to that statement showed that it had been exactly the right thing to say.

"And second, I promise I'm not going to use or even touch your stuff in the fridge or in the kitchen cabinets. Don't worry."

"Good," Rachel smiled.

"And I do yoga, too, only, I tend to do my yoga work-out in the evening."

Rachel beamed again. "In the evening, I go to Central Park to run a few laps. Maybe you could switch your yoga exercises to the morning and go jogging with me in the evening?"

Kurt, a bit taken aback at Rachel already planning out his day for him though they hadn't come to an agreement about the room yet, blinked a few times in surprise, and then nodded slowly - _Think of the washing machine! Think of the time you'll knock off your commute every day!_ \- and agreed.

"Yay!" squealed Rachel. "So when are you moving in?"

Again, Kurt was taken unawares. "Don't you have other candidates to interview before you make your decision?"

Rachel bit her lower lip. "You're the only serious applicant so far. So… Will you take the room?"

Kurt fiddled with his fingers. "You didn't mention the monthly rent I would have to pay. I… I'm not rich. If it's too much, I won't be able to take the room, I'm sorry."

Rachel laughed. "The last person who lived here with me was my boyfriend. And he didn't pay a cent. Ever. So I'm not going to charge you through the nose, don't worry. Just tell me what you're paying for the place you're staying at now, and I'll take that as the price for the room."

Kurt, relieved, quoted the price he was paying for his dorm room, and Rachel nodded. "That's fine. So when are you moving in?"

"This weekend?" Kurt asked tentatively.

"Make it Sunday," Rachel dictated. "I have tons of auditions on Saturdays. Sunday morning at 10 AM?"

"Okay," Kurt agreed, and Rachel squealed again and threw her arms around him in an impetuous hug.

 _Wow! Okay… I can add 'impulsive hugger' to the things I now know about Rachel Berry…_

Kurt only just managed not to lose his balance, and patted her back awkwardly.

Rachel drew back with a mega-watt smile on her face. "I can tell we're going to be besties soon! I'm so glad you applied for the room, Kurt."

Kurt smiled back hesitantly.

 _I'm not so sure about that, but I'll make a decent roommate. I won't be any trouble at all. You'll barely notice I'm here._

K&B

Now, two years later, Rachel's prophecy had surprisingly proved to be right. No longer was Kurt scared to speak up. No longer did he let himself be bossed around by Rachel. It had taken a while, but they had become friends. Once you looked past the forbidding front Rachel put up, she proved to be funny and kind and loyal. She was ambitious, yes, but she also spurred Kurt on to be the best he possibly could, sometimes by encouraging him and sometimes by antagonising him. She had a strict daily regimen, but then so did Kurt, and their schedules didn't clash.

That's why Kurt was surprised and disgruntled to be woken in the middle of the night by loud laughter. It wasn't Rachel. It was a man's voice. Rachel shushed him in frantic whispers, but that only made the man laugh harder. The laughter cut off abruptly and was replaced with kissing sounds and then loud moans.

 _I guess Rachel has a new boyfriend, then… Where are my earplugs?_


	3. Chapter 3: A Vision In A Burberry Coat

**Author's Note: Blaine's point of view again. Guess who the vision in a Burberry coat is? ;-)**

Chapter 3: A Vision in a Burberry Coat

Cooper took to his role like a duck to water, practising his lines and songs at home until Blaine knew them backwards and forwards, and going on and on about how he was going to wow the audience and become a household name on Broadway.

About two weeks into the rehearsals, Cooper offered to take Blaine along on Saturday afternoon so that he could meet Cooper's co-star and see them play a few key scenes. Blaine had already finished his assignments for that week and was quite frankly curious after having heard so much about Rachel from Cooper, so he accepted the invitation eagerly.

At the theatre, Cooper flashed the security guard his charming smile and announced that he'd brought his little brother Blaine to see the magic of Broadway. "Blaine, meet Bob. His beard will change from green to blue to purple every week, but he's the best security guard around, and a really nice guy too."

Blaine mumbled a hello, and Bob grinned at him and clapped him on the back. "Cooper's brother, huh? Handsome bunch, the lot of you. So you'll be the next Broadway star, then?"

Blaine, startled, quickly shook his head. "No, no!"

Cooper laughed loudly. "Blaine's far too shy for that. He sings well, though, I've got to admit. But he doesn't have the qualities of a star."

Cooper emphasised the last word, pointing at himself.

Blaine rolled his eyes and reminded Cooper of their plans. "Weren't you going to introduce me to Rachel, Mr Superstar?"

"Right!" Cooper clapped his hands. "Let's get this show on the road. This way, squirt!"

"Don't call me squirt!" Blaine protested, but Cooper just laughed.

As soon as Cooper knocked on the door to Rachel's dressing room, the leading lady came barrelling out, flashing a million-watt smile when she saw Cooper and Blaine, and giving Blaine a quick once-over. "This is your little brother then, sweetie?"

"The one and only Blaine Devon Anderson," Cooper presented Blaine with a flourish.

Blaine smiled nervously. "I'm pleased to meet you, Miss Berry."

Rachel laughed. "Call me Rachel, please. We're all family anyway."

Blaine, a little non-plussed by that offhand comment, looked at Cooper for a clarification, but Rachel wasn't done talking. "I'm going to hug you now."

Rachel enveloped Blaine in a warm hug, and Blaine hugged her back as soon as he'd gotten over his surprise.

"It's wonderful to meet my boyfriend's brother at last," Rachel continued. "I've heard so much about you."

"Boyfriend?" Blaine asked, and both Blaine and Rachel now looked at Cooper, who squirmed under their stares.

"Uhm, yes… I haven't mentioned it yet, Blaine, but Rachel and I are an item now."

Rachel beamed and stood on her tiptoes to kiss Cooper on the cheek.

"Life imitating art," Rachel explained. "We just have so much chemistry."

Blaine nodded politely, keeping his reservations to himself.

 _Good heavens… What was Cooper thinking? She's practically half his age… Though I wouldn't be surprised if she were the more mature of the two._

"So… Are you excited to see the play?" Rachel asked. "Have you seen a lot of Broadway plays?"

Blaine shook his head. "No. I have a demanding school and work schedule. I never go out, really."

"I know exactly what you mean," Rachel sighed. "It's so tough to combine a lead on Broadway with my school work. I have Kurt to help me, and I'm so thankful for that, but it's still hard."

"Kurt?" Blaine asked.

"My roommate," Rachel clarified. "He goes to NYADA too, and we're in a lot of the same classes, so he lends me his notes if I can't attend."

"That's handy," Blaine smiled.

Rachel sized him up shrewdly again, from the high-waters he was wearing to his gelled head, her eyes lingering on his bow tie. "Kurt is still single. And I have a hunch he'd like you."

Cooper roared with laughter. "Really subtle, Rachel."

Rachel shrugged. "It's true. Unless… Unless I'm wrong and you're not gay?"

Blaine blushed and lowered his eyes. "I'm gay, yes. But I'm not really looking for a relationship. As I said, I'm run ragged as it is. I'm in pre-law, and I'm trying to finish four years' worth of studies in two, so my work load is intense. And on top of that, I work in a coffee shop, as a barista. Some days, I barely get the time to eat and sleep. I don't know where I'd squeeze in a boyfriend, honestly."

Rachel hummed understandingly, but pouted a little. Then she perked up again, as another train of thought hit her. "Is the coffee shop any good? I mean, is the coffee decent? And do they sell vegan food? And good cheesecake? Kurt and I have been trying out hundreds of coffee shops here in New York, but we haven't yet settled on one that we really like. Not like the Lima Bean, at any rate."

Blaine scratched his head. "I don't know about the vegan food, I'm afraid. We have a selection of vegetarian sandwiches and muffins, but vegan… That's without milk and eggs, right?"

"I eat nothing that an animal has suffered for," Rachel declared. "No dairy, no eggs, no honey, no gelatin, no chicken stock for me."

Blaine nodded. "I'd have to check with my boss if we have vegan options. But an enthusiastic yes to the coffee and the cheesecake. They're both excellent, even by Lima Bean standards."

"You know the Lima Bean?" Rachel asked, surprise colouring her tone.

"I do," Blaine laughed. "Cooper and I are from Westerville, and one of the boys at my boarding school was from Lima, and we used to meet up at the Lima Bean during our Christmas or spring break."

Rachel beamed. "So tell me where I can find this coffee shop of yours, and I'll drop in one of these days."

"I'll do you one better," Blaine smiled, and he took a small notepad and a pencil out of his inner coat pocket and wrote the information down.

K & B

As Blaine was working the cash register the following day, he caught himself humming the Funny Girl songs time and again. Cooper had been singing Rachel's praises for weeks, and for once, he hadn't exaggerated a bit. Rachel's voice was phenomenal, and Blaine had really enjoyed sitting in on the Saturday rehearsal.

"Not you too," a high, melodious voice complained.

Blaine turned to look at the customer, an eyebrow raised, and then he had a hard time keeping his jaw from dropping. The man standing at the counter was stunning. A silhouette that seemed to come straight out of a magazine. Impeccably dressed, from his Burberry coat to his shoes. And those eyes… Wow!

"Could you please hum something not from a Broadway play, if it's not too much to ask?" Mr Top Model pleaded. "I'm all for Broadway, but the past few weeks, I've heard nothing else non-stop from my roommate, and I've reached my limit."

"Uh… Su-sure," Blaine stammered, trying and failing not to stare. From the way the corners of Mr Top Model's mouth quirked up, he must not have minded.

"A grande chai tea with soy milk, a grande non-fat mocha, a vegan chocolate chip muffin and a piece of cranberry cheesecake to go," Blaine's co-worker Stacey announced, shaking Blaine from his open-mouthed stupor.

Blaine quickly rang up Mr Top Model's purchases. "That'll be 13.95, please."

Mr Top Model gave him fifteen dollars and told him to keep the change. He took the paper bag holding the coffee and desserts off the counter, flashed Blaine a smile and left the shop. The back view was just as enticing as the front, not that Blaine was surprised.

 _Wow… Let's hope he comes in again one of these days…_


	4. Chapter 4: The Coffee Shop

**Author's Note: Kurt meets Cooper - slightly AU version of a canon Glee scene that I absolutely loved :-)**

Chapter 4: The Coffee Shop

The next morning, Kurt got up later than he usually did, his head hurting slightly. He walked to the kitchen on autopilot, grabbed a bowl and his breakfast cereal, poured milk over it and went to sit down at the kitchen table to eat. Somewhere between his second and third spoonful, his brain registered that he was not the only one sitting at the table. Across from him sat a very good-looking but also very naked guy, who seemed to come straight out of the Magic Mike films.

"Hi!" Mr Magic Mike greeted Kurt chipperly. "I'm Cooper."

Kurt, his eyes bugging out of his head, didn't reply. He just stared at Cooper dumbly.

Rachel sailed into the kitchen at this point, positively glowing with happiness. "Kurt, this is my boyfriend and co-star, Cooper."

Kurt turned to glare at her.

"Yes, yes, we probably woke you up last night," Rachel continued. "I'm sorry, Kurt. It wasn't planned. It just… sort of happened."

"Right," Kurt drawled. "Next time, could you make it happen at Cooper's place, please? I don't deal well with sleep deprivation. Also, your boyfriend's bare ass is on one of my vintage flea market chairs. Ugh. Tell him to at least put boxers on, please."

Cooper let out a deep and hearty belly-laugh. "And I thought that my brother was the absolute worst person to deal with in the morning… Okay, okay, I'll go put some clothes on!"

Cooper got up from his chair, yawned and stretched and then went in the direction of Rachel's bedroom.

"Close your mouth, sweetie," Rachel sing-songed.

Kurt, who'd been staring after Cooper in a daze - well, could you blame him, really? - snapped his mouth shut and glared at Rachel some more. "You're dating your co-star? Are you insane? What if you guys break up in a few weeks or months? That's going to make it so awkward playing opposite each other!"

Rachel waved that off with her nose in the air. "We're both professionals and excellent actors. We'll manage. Besides, I have a good feeling about this one."

Kurt rolled his eyes. "That's what you said about every boyfriend you've ever had, and they were all good-looking and charming bums, who didn't deserve you and leeched off of you."

Rachel shrugged, conceding the point. "Give Cooper a chance, okay? We'll see how it goes. For the moment, I'm happy with him, so be happy for me, please."

"Ugh, I need coffee to be able to deal with this," Kurt groaned, and he went to fill himself a mug. He drank deeply, and then smiled at Rachel over the rim of his mug. "I'm happy for you, Rachel. I hope it works out this time, really, I do."

Rachel beamed at Kurt, and threw her arms around him, kissing him on the cheek. "Thanks, Kurt. That means a lot. Now it's your turn. We'll find you someone just as amazing as Cooper."

Kurt raised an eyebrow at her. "Uhm… Thanks, but no thanks. Cooper's a little too much for me. Definitely too loud."

Rachel laughed. "Okay, we'll find you a quieter version, then."

"Rachel…" Kurt drawled. "No setting me up, please. I'm in my junior year at NYADA, and I'm on the verge of exchanging my internship at for a paid position. I need to focus and work hard. I can't afford any distractions."

Rachel pouted. "You're no fun."

"Promise me, Rachel," Kurt insisted. "No matchmaking. I'm serious."

Cooper came back into the kitchen and caught the tail end of Kurt and Rachel's conversation. "Who's matchmaking? Can I help? I love matchmaking."

And Cooper started singing "Matchmaker, matchmaker, make me a match!" at the top of his lungs. He scooped Rachel into his arms and twirled her around the kitchen. Rachel giggled and joined in. "Find me a find, catch me a catch…"

Kurt was torn between rolling his eyes at them and cooing because they looked so happy together, and in the end, he did neither. He quietly stole away to his bedroom to get showered and changed.

He dressed slowly, lost in daydreams. Yes, he was serious about his education and his career at , but still… One day, he wanted a special someone for himself too. He ignored the snide little voice in the back of his head that told him no-one would be interested in boring Kurt Hummel with his pasty face and girly voice and pointy little teeth, and spent five more minutes imagining a nameless and faceless Prince Charming sweeping him off his feet, singing duets with him and dancing around the kitchen with him.

Then a loud crash from the kitchen made him jolt back to reality. Alarmed, he ran there to check the damage, and found that Cooper had knocked their coffee maker off the counter. Rachel was already sweeping up the shards of glass, and Kurt quickly fetched a rag to mop up the coffee before it could stain the tiles.

Rachel never even lost her smile for a moment, though she usually hated housework and only did it with lots of grumbling. Now she was humming while she swept up the glass, her eyes bright and her face glowing.

 _Huh… If Cooper keeps her this happy, maybe I'll forgive him for destroying our coffee maker. Maybe._

K&B

A few weeks later, Rachel came home after her Saturday rehearsal and her shift at the Spotlight diner, waving a piece of paper in Kurt's direction. "Kurt, I've got a new coffee shop for us to try. Someone at the theatre mentioned it, and said their coffee was amazing and their cheesecake to die for."

Kurt, who was working on an article for , looked up and said tersely, "That's great. Put it in the glass jar and we'll check it out one of these days. Though I'd rather just have a new coffee maker here at home, if it's all the same to you. You promised you'd replace it first thing."

Rachel had the grace to look guilty. She put the address in the jar and sighed. "I know, Kurt, and I'm sorry. It's just that I've been SO busy. And when I'm not working for Funny Girl or for school or at the diner, I'm so exhausted I almost forget to eat."

Kurt could plainly see that Rachel was speaking the truth. Rachel's shoulders were slumped and there were dark circles under her eyes and no sparkle in them.

Kurt's expression softened, and he suggested, "Maybe you should drop your shifts at the diner? It's not like you actually need the money."

Rachel sighed again. "I know, but I figured it would make my portrayal of Fanny more authentic. It's gruelling, though. Maybe you're right. Maybe I should quit."

Kurt guided her to the sofa, gently pushed her down on it and started massaging her shoulders and back.

"Ah, that feels amazing," Rachel slurred, half asleep already.

Kurt chuckled. "Don't fall asleep here, it will be murder on your back!"

"Right," Rachel mumbled. Kurt helped her get up and put an arm around her waist. "Let's get you to bed."

In Rachel's bedroom, Rachel flung herself onto her bed without even taking her boots off, closing her eyes and drifting off to sleep at once. Kurt shook his head and tutted reprovingly. True, Rachel's bedspread was hideous, but it didn't deserve to have mud stains. Kurt zipped open Rachel's boots and took them off. Then he noticed Rachel's smudged mascara, and fetched a cotton pad and some make-up remover to clean her face before it was all over her pillows. Rachel didn't so much as stir, fast asleep already. Kurt tucked her in and quietly left her room.

 _Yes, Rachel should quit her job at the diner. She's wearing herself too thin._

K&B

Even after a good night's sleep, Rachel was still not back to her chipper and energetic self. She only stumbled out of bed after Kurt had already finished their usual yoga exercises, bleary-eyed and pale.

"You're not coming down with something, are you?" Kurt asked. "I can make you vegetable soup, if you like?"

Rachel shook her head. "I've got a craving after chai tea, actually. Would you mind checking out that new coffee shop I was talking about yesterday and get me a chai tea with soy milk and something vegan to nibble? Pretty please with a cherry on top? I'll pay for your coffee and pastry as well."

Rachel took her purse, intending to give Kurt the money for the tea and snack she'd requested, but Kurt refused to accept it. "No need to buy me off. I'll go fetch you your tea. My pleasure, and my treat. You stay here and relax. You look tuckered out."

Kurt took the piece of paper that held the address, shrugged his coat on and walked the few blocks to the coffee shop. It looked inviting enough, and the smell of freshly baked muffins wafted out when a customer opened the door to leave. It made Kurt's mouth water, and he stepped inside quickly, happy to be out of the cold.

Kurt scanned the menu overhead quickly, and was pleased to see that there were a few vegan options for Rachel. Today's suggestion of the chef was cranberry cheesecake, which sounded both yummy and festive.

Kurt placed his order and went to the cashier to pay. The man was humming. It made Kurt frown and whine to please stop it. Not because it sounded off-key. It didn't. The man had a rich tenor voice that was very nice to listen to, only he was humming "Don't Rain on My Parade", and Rachel had rehearsed that song ad nauseam in their apartment, and any love Kurt had ever had for it had long since evaporated.

The cashier turned around and quirked his eyebrow at Kurt.

 _Yes, I suppose it's pretty rude for me to tell him to stop humming… I had better explain myself._

So Kurt told the man about Rachel, and how she'd ruined the song for him. While he spoke, the cashier not so subtly checked him out and seemed pretty speechless with admiration.

 _Well… That's flattering… You don't look too bad yourself. Ease up on the hair gel and the loud clashing colours and you'll be a regular Prince Charming. Oh, and is that a bow tie you're wearing under that apron of yours? I approve. Suits you very well._

In the meantime, the barista had brought Kurt's mocha and Rachel's chai tea as well as their pastries, and the cashier stopped staring at Kurt and rang up his purchases.

Kurt paid and smiled at the cashier before turning around to leave. The man returned the smile bashfully.

 _I hope the coffee and desserts are good here, so that I have an excuse to come back. He's cute, and he has the sweetest smile._

K&B

Back at the apartment, Rachel moaned as she bit into the chocolate chip muffin Kurt had bought her.

"This is SO good," Rachel exclaimed.

Kurt took a small sip of his mocha and hummed in appreciation. "The coffee's good too. Let's see if the cheesecake's up to par."

After a few generous forkfuls, Kurt pronounced the cheesecake heavenly. "I think we've found our coffee shop, Rachel. How's the tea?"

"Excellent," Rachel beamed. "Yes, I vote for making this our regular coffee place."

Kurt took another bite of cheesecake and closed his eyes to fully appreciate the creamy treat. The cranberries added just the right amount of tanginess.

"Definitely going back there. Yum."

 _And of course it doesn't hurt that the baristas are as yummy as the sugary treats they sell… Well, at least that one guy is. But I'm not going to tell that to Miss Matchmaker or she'll insist on embarrassing the hell out of me if we go to the coffee shop together next time._


	5. Chapter 5: Cooper Meddles

**Author's Note: Uh-oh, here comes Cooper to mess things up...**

Chapter 5: Cooper Meddles

Mr Top Model kept coming to the coffee shop, often commenting on Blaine's song choices ("Katy Perry? Really?", wrinkling his nose in the cutest way) or even joining in quietly when he liked the tune Blaine was humming (Taylor Swift and Lady Gaga seemed his absolute favourites).

Blaine had glanced surreptitiously at the coffee cups the second time his new favourite customer came by, but they only said K and R, and he didn't know which initial belonged to Mr Top Model.

He noticed that half of the purchases were always vegan, though, so one day, Blaine remarked casually, "Did you try the new vegan cupcakes yet? They're really good."

Mr Top Model raised an eyebrow. "Me? I'm not vegan. Oh… Oh, yes, I always buy vegan stuff, but that's for my roommate. I'll take one of the cupcakes next time. What would you recommend?"

"I love the pumpkin pie ones," Blaine grinned.

"I'll pass that on, and see whether or not she's interested. Thanks for the tip!"

"You're welcome!"

So from that conversation, Blaine was able to deduce that the R cup, which held chai tea with soy milk, was for the vegan roommate, and the K cup was for Mr Top Model. He racked his brains to come up with K names.

 _Kyle? No, surely not. Keith? Hmm, he doesn't seem like a Keith. Kenneth? No, that's even worse! Kevin? He's so not the Kevin type. Karl? Maybe…_

Though they weren't on a first name basis yet, they did strike up a tentative friendship of sorts, fuelled by short conversations while Mr Top Model waited for his coffee orders to be made and his pastries to be bagged. Sometimes they discussed music. Sometimes the topic was fashion, sparked by a compliment from either of them ("I really like today's bow tie." "Thank you. I was in a Christmassy kind of mood."). Sometimes it was a "How was your weekend?" inquiry, where Blaine found out that they were both workaholics, who liked to cook and bake to de-stress and watch reality TV to relax after a day of hard work.

Blaine liked Mr Top Model. He liked him an awful lot. Only, he was a customer, and as such, Blaine didn't dare ask for his name or his phone number, though his co-worker Stacey kept badgering him to.

"He likes you too," Stacey insisted. "You're the only one he talks to. He came in last Tuesday and he looked so disappointed when he saw you weren't here."

"Maybe you're right," Blaine said, "but I simply can't ask him out while I'm at work. That would be unethical."

Stacey rolled her eyes. "You with your big words. Fine. Don't ask him out. See if I care. Don't come crying on my shoulder if he gets tired of waiting for you to make a move and finds himself another guy."

Blaine's face fell, and Stacey noticed and gave him a comforting side-hug. "Hey… For all I know, your way might be the exact right way to approach him. I see how his eyes light up when he's chatting with you. I'm sure he considers you a friend already, and maybe he's crushing on you too. But you'll never know for sure until you ask him out."

At home, Cooper was even less helpful than Stacey whenever Blaine brought up the subject of Mr Top Model. Cooper sniggered at the nickname, and mimicked Blaine fawning over his most good-looking and stylish customer in an exaggerated fashion that made Blaine's cheeks burn with shame.

Blaine could have sworn, though, that a spark of interest flashed in Cooper's eyes the day Blaine mentioned his hottie's roommate was vegan, but it was gone again in an instant, and Cooper only hummed distractedly when Blaine prattled on.

A few days later, Cooper came walking into the coffee shop during Blaine's shift, ordered a latte and a brownie and sat down at one of the tables for far longer than it took to finish his drink and snack. Blaine tried not to focus on his annoying brother, but he couldn't help but steal glances at him every now and then.

Blaine forgot all about Cooper's presence, though, when Mr Top Model walked in and flashed Blaine a smile. They were in the middle of a conversation about the latest episode of Cupcake Wars (the theme had been the 1950s and one of the contestants had decorated his cupcake with a bowtie, "and that made me think of you…") when all of a sudden Blaine felt someone clap him on the shoulder, hard. It was Cooper. He gave Mr Top Model a shoulder clap, too, which made him start violently and whip his head around so fast that Blaine could almost hear the crunch in his neck.

 _That's interesting… Looks like I'm not the only one who's been bullied in high school._

"Well," Cooper drawled, "here I was hoping to get to chat with you for a minute, only you're too busy with your boyfriend to pay any attention to me."

Blaine felt his cheeks heat up - _Please Cooper, stop embarrassing me!_ \- and saw Mr Top Model lower his eyes and fiddle with the bag holding his purchases, clearly feeling uncomfortable.

"That will be 13.95 then," Blaine said in a flat voice, not wanting to give Cooper any more ammunition, and accepted the usual fifteen dollars - "Keep the change".

Mr Top Model hurried out of the coffee shop as though his pants were on fire, his head down and muttering something to himself.

"Thanks a lot, Coop," Blaine said sourly.

 _Now my favourite customer might not want to talk to me again ever. Or even come here to this coffee shop._

"You're welcome!" Cooper beamed. He clapped Blaine on the back again - "STOP THAT, COOP!" - and walked out of the coffee shop whistling "Matchmaker", throwing his empty cup into the trash can with perfect aim and then cheering for himself.

Blaine couldn't help laughing, and then rolling his eyes, and then sighing.

 _Coop means well, I suppose. But that was less than helpful. I hope I'll get the opportunity to apologise for my idiot brother._


	6. Chapter 6: Cooper Finds Out

**Author's Note: And the plot thickens... More misunderstandings :-) *evil chuckle***

Chapter 6: Cooper Finds Out

Since the coffee and the pastries had both his and Rachel's seal of approval, Kurt kept going to the coffee shop with the cute barista. The third time Kurt went there, the cutie was working the coffee machines instead of the cash register, and hastily came to take Kurt's order when he noticed him, smiling brightly.

 _Why, hello there! Glad to see you too!_

Mr Cutie made the drinks expertly, singing a tune that Kurt couldn't make out until the noise of the machines cut off and he reappeared with Kurt and Rachel's drinks. Then Kurt wrinkled his nose and whined, "Katy Perry? Really?"

A moment later, Kurt wished the floor would kindly crack up and swallow him. That was twice now that he'd criticised the barista's music preferences, and both times, it had actually sounded really nice, so why on earth couldn't he have kept his mouth shut?

Mr Cutie didn't seem to mind, though, chuckling and switching to Frank Sinatra's "New York".

"Sorry," said Kurt, shamefaced. "I didn't mean… It sounded good. I'm not a music snob, I swear."

"You just hear too much Katy Perry on the regular," Mr Cutie surmised.

Kurt's ears burned, and he nodded sheepishly. "Yes. Yes, that's it."

Mr Cutie chuckled again, and winked at Kurt. "I'll try and remember that. Stacey, it's a grande non-fat mocha, a grande chai tea with soy milk, a vegan blueberry muffin and a piece of white chocolate cheesecake."

He turned to Kurt and added, "Enjoy!"

Then Mr Cutie turned around to go tend to his other customers, and Kurt was so distracted by that view that he didn't hear the cashier quote the price he had to pay. She repeated it a little louder, and Kurt let out an embarrassing high-pitched laugh and hurried to pay. She smiled at him knowingly and held out the change.

Kurt waved his hands. "No, no, you can keep the change."

Then he fled from the coffee shop, but he had to double back because he'd forgotten his purchases on the counter. Mr Cutie thankfully didn't notice, and the cashier didn't throw him any more meaningful looks. She just pushed the bag in his direction and said, "Enjoy!"

If that had happened in any other coffee shop, Kurt would never have darkened the doorway again, but somehow the lure of the cute barista proved stronger than the memory of how he'd embarrassed himself, and he went to the shop again and again.

Mr Cutie always talked to him now. It started with ordinary remarks about the weather, and Christmas coming up, and how he was going to give all the members of his family a bag of Christmas coffee blend and a panettone, because he was hopeless at gifts and wouldn't know what else to offer them.

"You can't go wrong with good coffee," Kurt remarked. "Maybe pair it with chocolate next time?"

They also talked about music quite a lot, Kurt commenting on what he heard Mr Cutie sing, though he was careful not to be so harsh again when he wasn't impressed with the song choice. Kurt even sang along hesitantly when his own favourites came up. That yielded a blinding smile from Mr Cutie, and a compliment about his voice.

Kurt decided to return the favour the following day and compliment Mr Cutie, who was working the cash register again, on his stylish red and green bow tie. Somehow, that led to them discussing Kurt's job at . At first, Mr Cutie seemed under the impression that Kurt was one of Vogue's models, but Kurt laughed and shook his head, telling him he was Isabelle Wright's assistant and wrote the occasional column for the website.

Mr Cutie's eyes widened and he started gushing about how he loved Isabelle Wright, whose clothing lines were always so original. He was cut off by his colleague, though, who shoved Kurt's order in his direction and told him to quit chatting and get on with his work.

Kurt always left the coffee shop with a wide grin that stayed pretty much all day through. He was glad that Rachel was too distracted with Cooper and the Funny Girl rehearsals to be very perceptive, or else she'd have called him out on his cheery disposition. He should have known, though, that it was all too good to last.

Two days before his Christmas break, Kurt popped into the coffee shop to see Mr Cutie one last time before he went to Ohio to celebrate Christmas with his father. He couldn't help but smile broadly when he saw his favourite barista behind the counter, dressed in a dark blue sweater with white and red accents.

They fell into conversation easily, but were rudely interrupted by someone clapping the both of them on the shoulder.

Kurt turned around, ready to get into his fight stance, and then deflated when he saw it was Cooper, Rachel's boyfriend.

Cooper grinned at Kurt and made a flippant remark about Kurt being too busy talking to his boyfriend to even notice Cooper.

Kurt felt the hair on his arms prickle uncomfortably. Yes, he had been flirting a bit with the cute barista, who hadn't seemed to mind, but Kurt didn't even know for sure if the barista was gay. What if he was offended at being taken for Kurt's boyfriend by Cooper?

And then Mr Cutie announced, his tone icy, that Kurt owed the coffee shop 13.95 dollars for his purchases.

 _So he is offended! I might have known he wasn't gay, in spite of the bow ties. All the best ones are either straight or taken. This is so mortifying. Now I'll never dare to come here again._

Kurt felt his shoulders sag in disappointment, handed Blaine fifteen dollars and then hightailed it out of the shop as fast as his legs would go.

 _Stupid Cooper! And he's such a blabbermouth! He's sure to mention this to Rachel, and then I'll never hear the end of it._

K&B

After his Christmas break, Kurt made sure he only went to the coffee shop whenever he knew Mr Cutie wasn't on duty.

Kurt regretted the romance that never was, certainly, but he wasn't one to sulk. He threw himself into his work with even more vigour than before, cooked gourmet meals on weekends and kept the apartment spic-and-span.

Rachel was gone more often than not, but when she was at home, she would give him a searching look whenever he served up another elaborate three-course meal or started scrubbing out the kitchen cabinets.

Kurt fully expected her to ask him what the matter was, but she never did.

That's why it took Kurt so much by surprise when, the second Friday of February, Rachel slammed her hands on the table while Kurt was serving dinner and explaining to her what he'd made this time.

"Okay, that's IT! I've had enough of you moping around and running this household as though you're trying to win the first prize in a homemaker competition. And don't think I haven't noticed those wistful looks at us whenever I bring Cooper over and we get all loved up. Clearly, you've had a crush on someone that didn't work out, and I'm sorry about that, but please get over it, won't you? It's been months! Sunday evening, we're going out, you and I, just like old times, and I want to see you smile and have fun again."

Kurt, a little shell-shocked after Rachel's speech, nodded wordlessly.

"Okay!" trilled Rachel. "Oh, I'm so much looking forward to Sunday. We've been responsible adults for so long now, I really need to let loose."

Kurt mustered up a shaky smile. "Me too. You're right."

Rachel squealed, swept around the table and engulfed Kurt in a hug. "We're going to have so much fun!"

The next day, Rachel informed Kurt she'd made dinner reservations. "So no backing out, Kurt! Your school work and your Vogue column can WAIT!"

"Yes, yes," Kurt said distractedly, peering at her over the rim of his reading glasses. "I promised to come, didn't I?"

"We have reservations at seven, so be ready by six thirty," Rachel commanded.

"Hmmm," Kurt hummed. "I will."

It wasn't until Kurt was painstakingly choosing the perfect outfit to go to dinner and then clubbing with Rachel that he realised it was Valentine's Day.

 _Doesn't Rachel want to be with Cooper on a day like this? Have they broken up? Wouldn't she have told me if they had?_

Kurt dressed mechanically, thoughts still whirling through his head.

 _Why is Rachel taking me out on Valentine's Day? Is she hoping I'll find my dream prince in one of the clubs we're going to? Seriously? That's high expectations! Or is she just counting on me hooking up with someone to get Mr Cutie out of my system?_

Rachel stood at the door already when Kurt came out of his room. She was looking at her wrist watch and tapping her foot. "I thought it was women who always took longest to get ready? Clearly, that doesn't apply here. Come along, slowpoke!"

They walked to the restaurant together, Rachel hooking her arm through Kurt's. "Isn't this nice? Let's not wait so long to do this again - I've missed you."

Kurt patted her arm. "Me too. And yes, we should go out together more often. We barely see each other anymore."

"I know," Rachel sighed.

"It's so sweet of you to give up your Valentine's evening for this," Kurt said gratefully. "I would have thought you'd rather spend today of all days with Cooper."

They reached the restaurant and Kurt gallantly held the door open for Rachel.

"Oh, but I am," Rachel answered.

Kurt quirked an eyebrow. "I'm going to be the third wheel on your date? Thanks for that, Rachel!"

"No, no," Rachel laughed. "It's not like that."

"Well, what's it like, then?" Kurt spat at her.

And then a terrifying thought occurred to him.

"Oh no. Oh no no no. Rachel, you didn't. Rachel, you wouldn't. Please tell me you didn't set me up with someone else on a blind date. And on Valentine's Day too, do you have ANY idea how tacky that is?"

The pure venom in Kurt's voice made Rachel's smile melt away, and she held up her hands in a defensive gesture. "Kurt, please, don't be like that! Blaine is really nice!"

Kurt was seeing red by now. "Blaine? Blaine?! You're setting me up with a GIRL?! Seriously, Rachel, I know I've never outright told you, but I thought it was quite obvious that I was GAY. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm OUT OF HERE!"

Kurt turned around, but not before he heard Cooper's booming laugh. Apparently, Kurt being gay and refusing to be set up with a girl was hilarious.

 _Yeah… Hahaha… Laugh it up, Cooper, why don't you? You knew I was gay. You've seen me flirt with the barista. Couldn't you have clued Rachel in before she made such a capital mistake? I'm sorry for that poor girl who'll be saddled with Cooper and Rachel making goo-goo eyes at each other for the rest of the evening, but over my dead body am I going back in there to pretend to be something I'm not._

Kurt walked down the street in long angry strides, muttering to himself. He heard someone run after him, and upped his pace even further, not in the mood to reason with Rachel any further.

"Wait! Wait! Kurt, please… Please wait!"

The voice calling after him wasn't Rachel's. It was a man's voice, and weirdly enough, it sounded a lot like Mr Cutie from the coffee shop. Kurt hesitated and then stopped and turned around.

The man hurrying to catch up with him looked a lot like Mr Cutie, too, and when he came close enough for Kurt to make out his features, he saw that it WAS Mr Cutie.

 _Okay, this is bizarre… How does he even know my first name?_

"I'm so… sorry, Kurt…" Mr Cutie panted. "I thought… you knew. I thought… you'd agreed… to meet me. I thought… Rachel… had told you."

Kurt furrowed his brow, thoroughly non-plussed. "Knew what? What was Rachel supposed to tell me? And how do you know Rachel in the first place?"

Mr Cutie sighed. "Let's start at the beginning, shall we? Hi, my name's Blaine Anderson, nice to meet you."

"YOU're Blaine?" Kurt blurted out, but then he snapped his mouth shut and politely shook the hand Blaine was holding out.

"I am, yes," Blaine smiled. "And to answer your question, I'm Cooper's brother, and that's how I know Rachel."

Kurt's eyes went wide like saucers. "Oh. Wow. Huh."

"And I'm really sorry my idiot brother scared you away from the coffee shop by calling you my boyfriend. That was really out of line. I admit I may have gushed about you a little too often to Cooper, but he had no business saying that while you were standing right there and could hear every word."

Kurt's mouth opened and closed a few times like a gaping fish before he could string together enough words to form a sentence. "He was talking to you? I thought Cooper said that to me, and I was mortified. All the more so because you'd stiffened up all of a sudden and I thought that maybe I'd been flirting with someone who turned out to be straight and offended by my advances. Wouldn't have been the first time."

Blaine laughed. "Oh no, I'm gay. Perfect gold star gay. And I just froze up because my brother was being obnoxious and poking his nose where it didn't belong. I wasn't offended at all, or have you missed the part where I've always flirted back?"

Kurt felt his blood rush to his cheeks. "Well, as I said, I've misread people before. I thought they were interested and then they really weren't."

Blaine took Kurt's hands in his and smiled at Kurt warmly. "I'm interested. Very much so. I've wanted to ask you out for ages, only I was always at work, so I didn't quite dare."

"That would have been rather unethical," said Kurt.

Blaine beamed. "Right? It so would. But then you never came back to the coffee shop after the Cooper incident, and I felt like I'd missed my chance. And yesterday, Cooper told me he'd had it with my sulking, and said he knew you, because you were Rachel's roommate, and he and Rachel had arranged for the four of us to have a double date. So I thought Rachel had told you who I was, and I was so excited I'd finally get a date with you. But then you came into the restaurant arguing with Rachel and you ran away. And I knew that I couldn't let you slip away from me a second time. I'm so sorry Cooper messed things up again. He's such an idiot. I'm going to throttle him whenever I see him next."

Kurt squeezed Blaine's hands lightly. "No need for that. We did find our way back to each other, didn't we? And we're no longer talking at cross-purposes. And we know each other's name now."

"Finally," Blaine sighed happily. "I've been running through all possible K names in my head, but none of them fit you exactly. Not like Kurt. I like it. Kurt."

"I'm sorry I thought Blaine was a girl's name," Kurt apologised, but Blaine waved that away. "That happens a lot, believe me. Loads of people are under the impression that my parents have a son called Cooper and a daughter called Blaine."

Kurt made a wry face at that. "When I answer the phone, everyone always thinks I'm my mother, because I have such a high voice. I always have to say 'No, she's dead, this is her son'. That leads to awkward pauses, I can tell you."

Blaine gripped Kurt's hands a little more tightly, looking very serious. "Your mother died?"

"When I was eight," Kurt replied. "Hey… I don't want to seem forward, but would you mind coming back to my apartment for a while? As much as I enjoy talking to you, I'm freezing and I would like to get out of the cold."

Blaine nodded vigorously. "Yes, please. I'm cold too. Lead the way."

Blaine let go of one of Kurt's hands, but held on tightly to the other, and they walked the short distance to Kurt and Rachel's apartment in companionable silence, their hands swinging in between them and each of them stealing glances at the other and then grinning when they were caught.

 _Well… I guess I found my dream prince anyway… Who'd have thought?_


	7. Chapter 7: Valentine's Day

**Author's Note: Kind of an unusual Valentine's date...**

Chapter 7: Valentine's Day

After Cooper's gaffe, Mr Top Model stopped coming to the coffee shop. Correction: he stopped coming to the coffee shop when Blaine was working. Stacey told him Mr Top Model still showed up regularly on Blaine's days off.

 _Stupid Cooper! Why did he have to meddle and ruin everything? And I'm stupid as well. Why didn't I say something when I had the chance? Stupid, stupid, stupid!_

Blaine fulfilled all of his duties as conscientiously as ever, but his colleagues saw that the sparkle in his eyes was missing, and that his smile for the customers looked brittle and forced.

"Hey…" Stacey asked one day, "You want me to slip your phone number to your crush when he comes in on Tuesday? I totally would, you know."

Blaine barked out a short humourless laugh. "No, Stace. But thanks for offering."

At home, too, Cooper got nosy and wanted to know why Blaine never talked about Mr Top Model any more.

"Because I haven't seen him since you interrupted us talking that day and called him my boyfriend," Blaine snapped. "I guess he wasn't amused. As usual, you put your foot in it, Coop."

Cooper seemed taken aback by Blaine's vehemence and animosity, and didn't bring up the subject again for months.

Halfway February, though, Blaine came trudging into their apartment wearily after a long study session in the library, and the first thing he saw was two boxes of pizza on the kitchen table.

"Are you having Rachel over?" Blaine asked, a little surprised. Rachel didn't like pizza, preferring Indian or Thai take-out instead.

Cooper shook his head and grinned. "No, this is for us. Just push your books aside for an evening and spend some quality time with your big brother, okay?"

Blaine quirked an eyebrow and drawled, "O-kay? What's the catch? What do you want from me this time?"

Cooper widened his eyes, the picture of innocence, and hurt crept into his voice when he answered, "There's no catch! I just want to hang out with you!"

Blaine nodded slowly. "All right. Star Wars marathon?"

Cooper beamed. "Star Wars marathon!"

It wasn't until the second film was coming to an end that Blaine noticed Cooper was fidgeting. Blaine looked at his brother and frowned. "Spit it out, Cooper. What is it?"

"I hate seeing you so unhappy," Cooper confessed. "I'm sorry I messed things up with your Mr Top Model, you know that, right?"

Blaine scowled. "Yes, well, sorry isn't going to help. I'm never going to see him again."

"Oh yes, you are!" Cooper said confidently.

Blaine looked at his brother quizzically. Cooper beamed at him.

"Okay, I'll bite," Blaine gave in. "How can you be so sure I'll see my crush again?"

"Because I know him," Cooper stated.

Blaine's eyebrows rose. "And you never thought to mention this to me before? Why exactly?"

"You chewed me out the one time I brought up the subject!" Cooper defended himself.

"Because you ruined any chance I might have had with him," Blaine hissed, still sour.

Cooper sighed. "Yes, yes, I'm sorry again. But as I said, I can make it all better."

"How?" Blaine asked, sceptical.

"Your Mr Top Model happens to be Rachel's roommate Kurt," Cooper grinned. "And guess who arranged for us to have a double date on Valentine's Day?"

Cooper unsubtly pointed at himself.

Blaine's eyes went wide and his mouth went dry. "You… You mean he agreed to go on a date with me?"

"The four of us are going on a date together," Cooper nodded. "I'm sacrificing my alone time with Rachel for this, so you had better be grateful."

Blaine tackled his brother backwards onto the sofa and hugged the living daylights out of him. "Thanks, Coop! You're the best!"

K&B

Valentine's Day dawned bright and clear, and Blaine smiled broadly at everyone he crossed jogging through the park. On his way home, he stopped at a delicatessen to buy a small box of Belgian chocolates as a Valentine's present for Kurt.

 _Kurt mentioned chocolate that one time, didn't he? It's so wonderful to have a name to put to the face now._

During his shift at the coffee shop, he couldn't stop smiling ecstatically, which earned him way more napkins with phone numbers from instantly smitten girls than he usually got.

Stacey counted them at the end of their shift, giggling all the while at the comments scribbled next to the phone numbers and reading out the best ones. "I like my baristas like I like my coffee – hot and sweet. If you're lonely this Valentine's, think of me."

"Not going to happen," Blaine mumbled, the tips of his ears going red.

Stacey winked at him and then moved on to the next message.

"Oh, this is priceless! 'You're as hot as the coffee you serve, and your smile just melted the frosting off my cupcake. Please call me.'"

Blaine snorted. "Where do they come up with this stuff? Please stop, Stacey!"

Stacey grinned at him unrepentantly. "Oh, come on, there's even one who wrote a poem! 'Roses are red, violets are blue, there's a coffee shop on every corner, but I only like the one with you.'"

"Those last two verses are way too long compared to the first ones," Blaine commented, and Stacey rolled her eyes at him.

"Fifty-four, fifty-five, fifty-six, fifty-SEVEN," Stacey counted. "Wow, that's a high new record. At least twenty more than the previous one. You girl magnet, you!"

Stacey made exaggerated doe eyes at him, blinking her lashes as fast as she could. "Oh, Mister Cute Barista, look at me! Smile at me! Make my day!"

Blaine, torn between laughing hysterically and wanting to sink through the floor, implored Stacey once again to please stop.

"Well, if you don't want any of these…" Stacey held up two hands full of scribbled-on napkins, "I guess they all go into the trash. You cruel man!"

That made Blaine flush and stammer that he didn't want… He didn't mean to… Honest!

Stacey took pity on him, patting him on the arm and telling him she was just joking. "Go on, get out of here! I know you have a hot date and want to dress to impress."

Blaine flashed Stacey a huge smile. She pretended to swoon and then waved him away.

At home, Blaine took advantage of the peace and quiet now that Cooper wasn't there yet to take a bath, groom himself and try out twelve different outfits, most of which he discarded outright as way too simple for Kurt's tastes. He was vacillating between his two favourite options, holding them in front of him and staring into the mirror to see the effect, when Cooper appeared behind him and offered his advice. "Pick the red trousers. Your ass looks amazing in them."

Blaine turned around. "Coop!"

"What? It's true! And Kurt is definitely an ass man. I've seen him look when you had your back turned."

Blaine felt his blood rush to his cheeks.

"But that bow tie with the hearts on them is overkill," Cooper commented. "You guys aren't even dating yet. Go with the black-and-white one. Classy. Very 1920s movie star. Kurt will love it. Goes very well with that grey sweater, too."

Blaine nodded and started putting on the chosen outfit.

Half an hour later, they were on their way to the restaurant, and Blaine was both so excited and so nervous that he was practically vibrating.

Cooper noticed, but rather uncharacteristically didn't tease Blaine. Instead, he said encouragingly, "Relax. Kurt likes you too. It will all go swimmingly."

At the restaurant, Cooper mentioned his name to the hostess, and she led them to a table near the window.

"Good, we'll see them arrive," Cooper beamed.

A quarter of an hour later, Cooper was sipping at a cocktail. He'd offered to get Blaine one too - "it will help you relax, squirt" - but Blaine had simply shook his head and asked the hostess for a glass of water. He hadn't touched it yet. He was looking at the drops of condensation that were slowly making their way down the glass when Cooper tapped his arm. "There they are!"

Blaine looked outside, and yes, there was Rachel in a bright red coat, arm in arm with Kurt, who was a vision in a dark grey pea coat with a blue scarf, his hair swept up dramatically.

Kurt held the door of the restaurant open for Rachel, as a true gentleman, and Blaine smiled approvingly.

And then it all went wrong. Kurt and Rachel were arguing. Kurt apparently hadn't known that Cooper would be at the restaurant, and resented Rachel for making him tag along as the third wheel on her date with Cooper. Rachel laughed and assured him it wasn't like that, and then Kurt's eyes widened in alarm, and he started hissing at her for setting him up on a blind date, on Valentine's Day no less, and didn't she realise how tacky that was?

Blaine was growing more and more agitated.

 _Why hasn't Rachel told him he's meeting me? I thought he knew! I thought he wanted this double date!_

And then Rachel let it slip that she'd set Kurt up with Blaine, and Kurt completely misunderstood, thinking that Blaine was a girl's name and stalking off offended.

That set Cooper off on a laughing fit. He guffawed so hard he had to wipe away tears of mirth. Blaine shot him a nasty look, jumped out of his chair and ran after Kurt without even getting his coat first.

Kurt was walking as fast as he could without outright running, and Blaine had a hard time catching up with him.

 _Wow, Kurt, slow down, please!_

Desperate to get to Kurt before he disappeared out of Blaine's life again, Blaine sped up his pace and yelled for Kurt to please wait for him.

Kurt slowed down and then turned around to face Blaine, his angry expression melting away when recognition hit him. Now, Kurt just looked confused.

Blaine started babbling apologies as fast as he could utter them, and Kurt's perplexity only grew, so Blaine sighed and decided to start at the beginning, introducing himself properly.

When it dawned on Kurt that Blaine was his promised date, and very much NOT a girl, his mouth fell open, and he blurted out, "YOU're Blaine?"

Then Kurt seemed aghast by his own rudeness and hastened to shake Blaine's hand, as if to say that his exclamation hadn't been meant as an insult and that he very much wanted to get to know Blaine.

 _Well, that's encouraging…_

Blaine explained that he knew Rachel through Cooper, and Kurt went slack-jawed again.

Then Blaine apologised for Cooper's behaviour in the coffee shop, and Kurt frowned and then gaped, struck speechless once more. It was clear he had something to say, though, so Blaine waited patiently for Kurt to compose himself and speak.

You could have knocked Blaine down with a feather when Kurt explained he thought Cooper was speaking to him, not Blaine, and then thought Blaine was freezing Kurt out in disgust at being considered gay and Kurt's boyfriend.

Blaine couldn't help but laugh at that, a spark of hope igniting in his chest when Kurt mentioned he'd been flirting with Blaine.

Blaine quickly assured Kurt that he was very much gay and not offended by Kurt's flirting in the least. Hadn't he always flirted back just as hard?

That made Kurt blush prettily, and admit that he'd barked up the wrong tree before, and mistaken friendliness for romantic interest.

Blaine's lips curved up as far as they could go, and before he could second-guess himself, he'd taken Kurt's hands and told him that he was very much interested, but had held off asking Kurt out because he'd always been at work when he saw Kurt.

Kurt instantly understood, and that made Blaine smile even wider, and then explain further about the double date.

 _Why didn't Rachel tell Kurt about it? She might have known he'd have a fit at being set up! And why did Cooper make me believe Kurt knew about this and wanted to date me? Seriously, I'm going to KILL him if he's ruined every chance I may have had with Kurt now._

Before he knew it, Blaine was voicing his displeasure at his brother's idiocy, and Kurt gently squeezed his hands and soothed him, saying there was no harm done, and that they were together now, and understood the situation, and knew each other's names. Kurt tacked an apology onto that, for thinking Blaine was a girl's name, and somehow that led to Kurt telling Blaine about his mother dying when he was eight, and Blaine felt his heart break for Kurt.

Kurt clearly didn't want to discuss the topic further, and suggested going to his apartment nearby to continue their conversation, seeing as it was freezing and snowing.

 _Anything you like, gorgeous, if that means I can spend more time with you…_

K&B

As soon as they were in Kurt and Rachel's apartment, the temperature difference got to Blaine. He hadn't noticed the cold while explaining things to Kurt, but now that he was in a warm apartment, it dawned on him that running out of the restaurant without his coat might not have been very wise. He felt like an icicle, frozen all the way through, and started to shiver violently.

Kurt threw him a concerned look, and the next thing he knew, Blaine was sitting on the sofa, his wet sweater gone, swathed head to foot in a thick afghan, while Kurt busied himself making hot chocolate for the both of them.

Blaine couldn't get the tremors racking through his body under control, and when Kurt handed him a mug, his hands trembled so strongly that the hot liquid sloshed over the rim and onto his fingers, making him hiss in pain.

Kurt quickly took the mug away from him again, his brow furrowed and his expression anxious.

"Okay, so that won't work," Kurt murmured. "Come with me, sweetie."

Kurt led Blaine to his bedroom and pointed to his bed. "Get under the covers, and I will, too. That's the only thing that will help now to warm you up again."

Kurt helped Blaine take off his shoes when Blaine's fingers refused to cooperate to undo his laces, and then blushingly suggested that Blaine might want to get out of his wet trousers.

"You can put on some pyjamas of mine instead. I'll change into pyjamas as well."

Kurt rummaged in his closet and handed Blaine dark blue flannel pyjamas. Then he turned his back to Blaine to take off his own trousers, which were also covered in snowflakes, his vest and his shirt, leaving him in a wife beater and snug boxer briefs with a camouflage print. Blaine's mouth went dry, and he fumbled helplessly with the button of his trousers to follow suit, his stiff fingers proving useless once again.

Kurt wriggled into his pyjama bottoms and shrugged on his pyjama top. He turned around while doing up the buttons, and raised an eyebrow when he saw Blaine fiddle with his trouser button unsuccessfully.

Blaine shot him a pleading glance, and Kurt quickly undid the button and the zipper for Blaine, and helped him get out of the trousers, which clung to his legs, uncomfortably cold and heavy.

Blaine hurried to put on the borrowed pyjamas.

"Come, before we both catch our death of cold," Kurt said then, and they slid under the covers, Blaine's teeth chattering when the cool covers touched his skin.

"Come here," Kurt ordered, holding his arms open, and Blaine crawled into them hurriedly, craving the heat Kurt's body provided.

Kurt shivered. "You're cold as ice."

"So-so-sorry…" Blaine stammered out, another violent tremor shaking his body.

"Oh, shush, it's okay," Kurt reassured him, gathering him even closer, his arms winding around Blaine protectively and his legs tangling with Blaine's. Blaine's nose was smushed against Kurt's chest and his ear was flattened against Kurt's collarbone.

Blaine felt Kurt's warm breath wash over his curls, and shuddered with how good that felt. Kurt, however, seemed to think Blaine was still cold, and took to rubbing circles on Blaine's back. That had the double effect of warming Blaine up and soothing him to the point where he fell asleep, his last conscious thought that this was absolute heaven.

K&B

Blaine was startled awake by a loud voice.

"Kurt? Kurt?! Are you at home?"

Blaine felt Kurt's voice rumble through him when he answered in clipped tones. "Yes, Rachel, I'm at home."

"Why is there a full mug of chocolate milk on the coffee table? And you spilled some on the floor. And there's more on the stove."

"Rachel, I'm already in bed, so leave me alone!" Kurt yelled. "I'll clean it up tomorrow. What are you doing here anyway? Shouldn't you be at Cooper's right now?"

"Well, he's looking for his brother. Blaine. He went running after you, without his coat on. And he's not at their place. We went there first. So we hoped he'd managed to catch up with you and I would find you both here."

Blaine groggily tried to sit up, intent on telling Rachel she could stop worrying, but Kurt shook his head and put his index finger to his lips, pulling Blaine to his chest again and stroking his curls absent-mindedly.

"Have you ever heard of this handy new-fangled device called a cell phone?" Kurt asked conversationally. "It allows you to reach someone wherever he or she is. Have you tried that?"

Rachel was silent for a beat. Then Blaine heard her tapping on her phone, and a moment later she said, "Cooper, have you tried calling or texting Blaine?"

There was a moment of silence, and then she said, "Kurt's here, but Blaine isn't with him. Yes, text him and let me know if he answers."

Kurt whispered to Blaine, "Is your phone on silent?"

Blaine nodded.

"Is it in your trousers?" Kurt asked.

Blaine nodded again.

Kurt slipped out of bed with the stealthy grace of a jungle cat and rifled through Blaine's trouser pockets for his phone. Then he slid back under the covers, grinning, and handed Blaine his phone.

There was one new text message. "Blaine, where are you? Let me know asap, I'm out of my mind with worry! Cooper"

"Let me answer," Kurt suggested. He took the phone, held it so that Blaine could see the screen as well, and typed, "I'm okay. Staying with a friend. Didn't want to go home and listen to you two having loud sex. I'll be back tomorrow. Around eleven? Or do you want me to stay out until later? B"

"Okay?" Kurt asked, and Blaine grinned and nodded.

Kurt sent the text. Hardly a minute later, they got a response. "A friend? Since when do you have friends? Well, I'm glad you're okay. And come home whenever you want to, Rachel's gone back to her place, to look for you. No sex tonight, loud or otherwise :-( Cooper"

Blaine gestured for Kurt to hand him back his phone, and typed, "I'll have you know I have lots of friends. And serves you right for messing things up again for me. Some matchmaker you are! B"

Kurt suppressed a giggle.

Apparently, Cooper was briefing Rachel on the situation, because the next thing they heard was the click-clacking of Rachel's heels, and then she yelled, "Blaine's okay, he's staying with a friend. I'm going back to Cooper's!"

"Bye, Rachel!" Kurt answered.

They heard the front door slam closed, and Kurt resumed his head rub, making Blaine's eyes roll to the back of his head with how amazing that felt.

"What was all the secrecy for?" Blaine wanted to know.

"Huh…" Kurt huffed. "If they knew we were together right now, they'd put that as a feather in their cap. And they don't deserve that. They're the worst matchmakers ever."

Blaine laughed. "They are. Still, they'll find out soon enough, won't they? I'm not planning on letting you go again ever."

Kurt's eyes softened, and his hand travelled down from Blaine's hair to caress Blaine's cheek. "Same here. But I don't want to let them know for a while yet. Let them stew."

"Okay," Blaine agreed easily, closing his eyes in bliss when Kurt started massaging his forehead and temples with a feather-light touch.

"How are you feeling?" Kurt asked solicitously. "Do you feel warm again now?"

Blaine felt his lips stretch from ear to ear. "Toasty. Never felt so good in all my life."

Kurt pressed a kiss to the top of Blaine's head. "Good. Are you hungry?"

As if on cue, Blaine's stomach rumbled, and they both laughed.

"I'll take that as a yes," Kurt said. "I'll go take care of dinner. You stay here and rest."

Kurt got up, put on a dressing gown and went to the kitchen, where Blaine heard him clang with pots and pans. Blaine buried himself a little further under the bed covers and dozed off again.

His nose woke him this time, sniffing appreciatively when a delectable smell drifted into the room. Blaine opened his eyes lazily and saw Kurt holding a tray with two plates of food.

"Hey," Blaine croaked.

"Hey, sleepy-head," Kurt smiled. "I hope you like chicken curry."

"Sure," Blaine slurred sleepily. "Smells good."

Blaine scooted up to sit against the headboard. Kurt handed him a plate and silverware and then joined him on the bed.

"I don't usually eat in bed," Kurt confessed. "Don't want stains and crumbs everywhere."

Blaine hummed in assent, his brain still a bit hazy and his mouth too full to speak.

"But I don't want you to get cold again," Kurt continued. "And this is nice and cosy."

Blaine hummed again.

"Not very awake, are you?" Kurt laughed. "As soon as we're done eating, I'm going to find you a spare toothbrush, and then we'll call it bed time, all right? Unless you'd like a hot bath to warm up further."

Blaine considered this, and then shook his head. "I'm warm 'nough."

Amusement danced in Kurt's eyes. "Okay, eat up, then, sleepy-head."

They ate in companionable silence, and then Blaine took the tray back to the kitchen, where he washed the dishes. Kurt dried them and put them away, and then mopped up the spilt chocolate milk and put the mug on the kitchen table.

"Want me to warm up the chocolate milk for us in the microwave?" Kurt offered.

Blaine smiled. "Yes, please."

"I even have marshmallows," Kurt promised. He paused, checked the refrigerator, and announced proudly, "And whipped cream, too."

"Yum," Blaine grinned.

They sat down on the sofa, the afghan draped over them, sipping their hot chocolate, while Kurt was mindlessly zapping through the television channels.

Afterwards, they brushed their teeth and got into bed again.

"It's weird how this doesn't feel the least bit awkward," Kurt mused.

Blaine smiled hugely. "I know, right? And thank you. Thank you for hearing me out, and for taking care of me. This has been the best Valentine's Day ever."

Kurt beamed. "For me too. I'm glad we found our way back to each other, in spite of Rachel and Cooper's meddling."

"Me too," Blaine agreed. "So when are you planning on telling them?"

Kurt bit his lip. "Hmm… At their wedding?"


	8. Chapter 8: Keep It Secret, Keep It Safe

**Author's Note: Kurt keeping mum about seeing Blaine :-)**

Chapter 8: Keep It Secret, Keep It Safe

Taking Blaine home had been wise and had come none too soon, Kurt discovered. The moment they were inside the apartment, Kurt saw Blaine shiver, and no wonder… Blaine wasn't even wearing a coat, and his sweater, though it was thick, was soaked through.

"You're freezing!" Kurt exclaimed. "Why aren't you wearing a coat in this weather? Never mind, take off that sodden sweater. We need to warm you up again."

Kurt helped Blaine out of his sweater, took an afghan off the back of the sofa and wrapped Blaine up in it.

"I'll make you some hot chocolate," Kurt offered. Kurt hurried to the utility room to hang the sweater up to dry, and then to the kitchen for the hot chocolate, but when he returned with a steaming mug, Blaine was trembling too violently to properly hold the mug, and Kurt had to come up with a plan B.

 _This is not really stuff you do on a first date, but if it helps Blaine, then I really don't care…_

Kurt tugged Blaine to his bedroom, helped him take off his shoes and handed him a pair of pyjamas. He changed into his own pyjamas, and then assisted Blaine, who seemed frozen to the point that he could barely function anymore.

They got into bed, and Blaine gratefully snuggled up to Kurt, who couldn't repress a shiver of his own when Blaine's cold body touched his.

 _Oh, poor baby, come here…_

Kurt pulled Blaine as close as he could, and when he felt Blaine shudder again, he slowly rubbed Blaine's back to warm him up further. After a while, Blaine's eyes fluttered closed and his breathing evened out.

 _Yes, take a nap. Maybe by the time you wake, you'll feel warm again._

Kurt enjoyed the view. Blaine had the loveliest lashes, and his wetly glistening curls were so beautiful, too. Somewhere between admiring Blaine's strong jaw line and trailing a tentative finger over his stubble, Kurt fell asleep as well.

The next thing he knew, Rachel was shouting at him from the living room, asking if he was there, and why there was chocolate milk on the floor.

Kurt didn't even disguise how disgruntled he was when he answered that he was in bed already and ordered her to leave him alone.

Rachel didn't, though. Apparently, she and Cooper were looking for Blaine, and she wanted to know if he was with Kurt.

Blaine, blinking away his sleepiness, was about to answer Rachel when Kurt stopped him, and told Rachel to have Cooper call or text Blaine.

 _Over my dead body am I telling her Blaine's here with me, or she'll crow over that for years to come, and she doesn't deserve to. Worst matchmaker ever!_

Kurt asked Blaine where he kept his phone, and quickly fetched it for him.

Cooper had sent Blaine a frantic text, so Kurt and Blaine texted back that Blaine was staying with a friend. That seemed enough to put both Cooper and Rachel at ease, and Rachel said her goodbyes to Kurt and left for Cooper's.

Kurt let out a sigh of relief and absent-mindedly started to play with Blaine's curls, telling Blaine he didn't want Rachel and Cooper to know they were together.

Blaine seemed to find that amusing, but didn't argue.

Kurt reluctantly left his bed to make them both dinner, and took a tray back to the bedroom, where an adorably drowsy Blaine waited for him.

After dinner, they did the dishes and then drank the hot chocolate while watching TV.

 _It feels like we've been living together forever… Blaine is so easy to be with._

Kurt voiced that thought later, when they got into bed again.

 _This feels so natural. Like it's completely normal for Blaine to sleep in my bed. And we've only just met. Is that what they call soul mates?_

K&B

Keeping their relationship hidden from Rachel and Cooper proved easier than expected. At first, Kurt and Blaine only spent time together when they knew their respective roommates were at the theatre.

Then, a few weeks later, Kurt casually mentioned to Rachel that he wouldn't mind if Cooper moved in. "I'll give the both of you your space, I swear. I'm rehearsing for NYADA's King Lear production most evenings anyway, so if you want a night to yourself, just tell me and I'll stay over in the dorm room where we're rehearsing."

Rachel tilted her head to the side. "Ooooh… And whose room is that? Someone I know?"

Kurt rolled his eyes. "It varies. Tomorrow, we're rehearsing in Claire's room, you know, who danced ballet at the Winter Showcase? Her roommate is out on Wednesdays. Sings in a bar that night. On Fridays, we go to Denise's room, because her roommate goes home every weekend and is gone by two in the afternoon. And on Monday's, it's Mark's room. His roommate always stays over at his boyfriend's that day."

"Mark, huh?" Rachel repeated.

"Rachel, whatever you're thinking, put it out of your head RIGHT NOW," Kurt said sternly. "Not a word to Mark, and no plans to get Mark and I together. No meddling AT ALL. If I find out you talked to Mark behind my back, I'm moving out of here and never talking to you again. Are we clear?"

Rachel pouted but nodded reluctantly. "No meddling. Got it. Monday would be ideal, though, seeing as we have no shows to play on Mondays."

"Right," Kurt drawled. "Okay, Mondays it is, then."

Cooper moved in, and though Kurt had to get noise-cancelling headphones as a result, he didn't mind too much. It was worth it to see Rachel so happy.

Rachel kept her word, thankfully, and didn't talk to Mark, who'd have been very surprised to learn Kurt supposedly slept over at his dorm room every Monday night. Kurt, of course, did no such thing, leaving for Blaine's place the minute rehearsals were over.

However, Rachel did wink and smile at Kurt impishly whenever they crossed Mark at NYADA. Kurt praised himself lucky that Mark was very oblivious.

 _It's bad enough that Rachel thinks Mark and I are friends with benefits. The last thing I need is Mark cottoning on and chewing me out about it._

K&B

Though Kurt and Blaine didn't get to spend much time together, they made the most of it. Kurt took to writing his essays and Vogue articles in the coffee shop while Blaine was working so that he could sneak glances at his boyfriend every now and then and share a piece of cheesecake with him during his break.

The first time they'd entered the coffee shop together, Blaine's colleague had bounded up to them excitedly. "Does this mean you're together now? Please say yes, Blaine's been moping for too long."

"Yes," Kurt giggled.

"Oh good! My name's Stacey, by the way."

"Kurt. Nice to meet you."

Blaine accompanied Kurt to the Vogue headquarters, and though he stammered and stuttered himself through his introduction to Isabelle, he soon won her over with his charm and got blanket permission to come visit Kurt at work whenever he liked.

Isabelle soon got used to Blaine sharing Kurt's desk and working diligently for school while Kurt fielded Isabelle's phone calls, sorted her work-related mail and arranged meetings for her.

Then their summer break rolled around, and Kurt announced to Rachel and Cooper that he was a bit overwrought and needed a real break. "I've got some money saved up, so I'm going to look up last minute travel deals and get out of here for a while."

"On your own?" Rachel asked incredulously.

"Who else do I need?" Kurt retorted. "I just want to soak up the sun and relax and eat good food. No distractions. I don't plan on taking my laptop with me, and I might even leave my phone behind. I just want rest."

Rachel looked as though she wanted to argue further, but Cooper laid a hand on her arm. "Let it go, honey. It's up to Kurt if he wants to travel alone."

Kurt threw Cooper a grateful smile, and went back to scrolling through travel pages.

A few days later, Cooper got a call from Blaine, who told his brother a couple of friends had invited him along for a vacation in the sun. "Just so you won't worry if you turn up at the apartment and don't find me there."

Cooper hummed. "Wish I had a summer break… I could do with a vacation too. Well, enjoy, squirt. Get some!"

Kurt, who was sitting next to Cooper on the sofa, heard Blaine mumble something incoherent in response to that, and repressed a smirk.

 _Oh, we're planning to, Cooper!_

K&B

After their vacation together, Kurt took Blaine with him to Lima, to introduce Blaine to Burt, who'd heard from Kurt that he had a boyfriend now and insisted on meeting him. Blaine seemed taken aback by Burt's gruffness at first and didn't say much, but during dinner, Burt started talking about football, and Blaine joined in the conversation eagerly, which made Burt thaw out.

In the afternoon, Burt took them along to the garage. "The guys want to see you too, Kurt!"

Kurt rolled his eyes, knowing that this was Burt speak for "We're short-handed during the summer holidays, so why don't you pitch in when you're here anyway". He didn't protest, though, and introduced Blaine to all the mechanics before donning his coveralls and getting to work.

Blaine went up another notch in Burt's estimation when he not only proved knowledgeable about cars, but asked if Burt had some spare coveralls he could borrow, because he wanted to help out too.

"My dad and I restored a 1967 Chevrolet Camaro together, and I really enjoyed that. It's been too long since I've worked on a car."

When they left the garage that evening, Burt clapped Blaine on the back and told him he was welcome at any time, with or without Kurt.

"Hey!" Kurt exclaimed indignantly.

Burt grinned and winked at Blaine. "What? At least Blaine likes football!"

K&B

As summer turned to fall, both Kurt and Blaine threw themselves back into their work with renewed energy, and went back to spending Monday nights together and being a fixture at each other's workplace.

The first Monday of the school year, Rachel raised an eyebrow when Kurt announced he was going to sleep over at a friend's. "You're not rehearsing for any play right now, and there aren't any study groups yet either. Why would you need to sleep anywhere else than here?"

"Maybe I just need a break of you two every now and then," Kurt said drily.

Rachel scoffed at that. "Or maybe you just need to get laid. Who's the friend with benefits this year? Still Mark?"

Kurt glared at her. "Rachel, please stop poking your nose into my business! We talked about this."

"Okay, okay," Rachel grumbled. "No meddling and no mentioning your love life, got it."

K&B

When Rachel mentioned she'd take Cooper along on a cruise with her fathers for Christmas, Kurt suggested that Cooper could take her to meet his family at Thanksgiving. "I'm going home to see my dad, too."

The upside to going home for Thanksgiving was that Kurt and Blaine got to spend their entire Christmas break together, and they revelled in two weeks without hiding and evading. They went skating, shopping and sight-seeing, and even had a snowball fight in Central Park one day.

The day before Rachel and Cooper were due back, Kurt looked at Blaine over the kitchen table and sighed. "I'm going to miss this. Maybe I should look for an apartment of my own."

Blaine took Kurt's hand in his and squeezed softly. "You're the one who wanted to keep this a secret. I'm more than willing to tell Rachel and Coop."

Kurt tilted his chin up and shook his head. "No. Not until their wedding."

Blaine chuckled. "Cooper's thinking of proposing. I'd better give him a nudge in the right direction, though, or it might take him ages."

"Tell you what," Kurt bartered. "If you get Cooper to propose to Rachel, I promise to move out of Rachel's place after the proposal."

"Deal."


	9. Epilogue: Rachel & Cooper's Wedding

**Author's Note: All's well that ends well :-)**

Epilogue: Rachel and Cooper's wedding

"Stop pacing, Coop, you're making ME nervous," Blaine complained.

Cooper sighed and slumped down in a chair. "Why is this taking so long? It's taking forever! And why can't I see Rachel before the wedding? That's just stupid. I haven't seen her for a nearly a week, what with Kurt arranging…"

Cooper stopped abruptly and looked down at his hands.

"I'm sure you'll survive another fifteen minutes without Rachel," Blaine said drily, paying no heed to Cooper's mention of Kurt.

"And you have the rings, right?" Cooper verified.

Blaine rolled his eyes. "Yes, Cooper, I have them right here in my breast pocket."

"Okay. Okay. We can do this. We can do this."

Blaine suppressed a smile and patted his brother on the back.

Blaine's cell phone chimed with a message.

 **From: Angel**

Rachel's driving me crazy. Wish this wedding was over already.

Blaine smiled and answered, "Same here. See you soon, gorgeous!"

He got a smiley back, and pocketed his phone again.

Cooper let out another big sigh, and Blaine chuckled. "Drama queen!"

"Wait 'till it's your turn," Cooper warned him darkly.

Blaine laughed. "You think I'll be just as much of a wreck as you are?"

"You'll be worse," Cooper predicted. "So much worse."

There was a knock on the door, and Pam Anderson came in. "So how's the groom doing? Your bride looks A-MA-ZING, cookie bear! Wait 'till you see her!"

Cooper growled. "Not helping, Mom!"

Pam quirked an eyebrow at Blaine.

"Yes, he's been like that ever since we arrived here," Blaine confirmed. "You'd think he's about to have root canal treatment."

"Just you wait, squirt," Cooper threatened. "You'll be a million times worse when you get married, and then I will laugh!"

"Can't wait!" Blaine quipped, and Pam pursed her lips in an attempt not to show her amusement.

Cooper narrowed his eyes at the both of them. "Would it kill you to be supportive at a time like this?"

"I've never been anything else but supportive, so don't you dare say I'm not!" Blaine retorted. "I agreed to be your best man, I helped you with your proposal, I escorted Rachel to any and all wedding preparations when you couldn't make it, I helped you write your vows and I even ran to the dry-cleaners for you this morning because you'd forgotten to fetch your tux. I am supportive. You're just acting like a whiny toddler right now, and I'm not going to humour you."

"If getting married makes you this nervous already, how are you going to cope with Rachel having a baby?" Pam asked. "I know one thing: I'm not going to come to the hospital until after Rachel's delivered."

Cooper threw his arms in the air. "Why doesn't anybody understand what I'm going through?"

Blaine rolled his eyes. "We understand all right. It's called 'last minute nerves'. Now get over yourself. Want me to tie that bow tie for you?"

Cooper sighed. "Might as well. I will probably make it look crooked."

Blaine deftly tied the bow tie and then looked Cooper over thoroughly. "There. You look officially perfect. Let me take a picture to tweet to your fans, and let Mom have her emotional moment about her 'baby getting married' and shed a few tears, and then it will be time for the wedding."

Cooper perked up at the mention of his fans and obligingly posed for a picture.

" CooperAnderson ready to marry his leading lady RachelBarbraBerry," Blaine typed under the photograph, and then tweeted it. Almost at once, his Twitter feed blew up with likes and comments.

Cooper looked over Blaine's shoulder to see people's reactions, and beamed when he saw they all called him perfectly handsome and wished him and Rachel a happy life together.

"There, I knew that would calm you down," Blaine smiled. "Okay, Mom, one last hug and then Cooper needs to get going."

Pam pulled Cooper in for a hug. "I'm so happy for you. You know that, right? We like to tease you a bit, but the truth is I'm overjoyed that you found your match. You've always been so wild and carefree, and I thought you'd never settle down and marry, but all it took was Rachel singing to you and you knew you'd found your soul mate. She's amazing, sweetie, and I love her like a daughter already. She'll keep you on your toes, which is just what you need. Promise me you'll always cherish and love her as much as you do now."

"Course I will," Cooper mumbled against Pam's shoulder.

"It's not always going to be easy," Pam warned him. "You'll fight. A lot. About the silliest things sometimes. You'll disagree about baby names and accent colours for the walls, and you leaving dirty socks on the living room floor will drive her crazy, and her taking hours to match her dress with her handbag and shoes will have you tear your hair out. But you need to work through all that, and never forget, even for a moment, how much you love her."

Cooper, his expression earnest and a lot calmer now, nodded. "I will, Mom. I promise."

K&B

The wedding ceremony went without a hitch, thanks to Kurt's flawless planning and Blaine's gentle guiding of Cooper.

Blaine sighed in relief when the ceremony was over and Cooper escorted his bride out of the room proudly. Family and friends followed them, but Blaine hung back.

"Phase one went well," a low voice behind Blaine remarked, making him jump.

Blaine turned around and beamed at Kurt. "It did, yes. And you look absolutely stunning. I had to recite Cooper's wedding vows in my head so as not to get distracted and stare at you the whole time."

"Same here," Kurt sighed dreamily. "You know what seeing you in a tux does to me."

Blaine grinned. "Do I? I could use a reminder. Show me after the wedding."

Kurt growled. "I will. Now let's go find our seats, or they'll start without us."

"They would," Blaine chuckled.

Blaine and Kurt slipped into their seats at the big table where Rachel and Cooper were sitting. Blaine saw Rachel raise an eyebrow when she saw the two of them arrive together and then sit down next to each other, Kurt smiling at Blaine gratefully when he held out Kurt's chair for him, and Blaine smiling back and winking. Rachel elbowed Cooper, who looked just as surprised when he noticed Kurt and Blaine's proximity and gentle flirting.

Rachel's dads started off the speeches, talking about Rachel as a child, which had their audience coo and laugh, and then wrapping up their speech with a duet that had Rachel in tears and made her reach for them with fumbling arms.

Next, Blaine stood up to talk about his big brother, sharing a few childhood anecdotes, and then telling how Rachel had brought out the best in Cooper.

Then it was Kurt's turn.

Kurt got up and smiled at Rachel and Cooper affectionately.

"I remember when I met Cooper. Hard to forget, really. One morning, I got up and stumbled into the kitchen to make myself breakfast, and there, at our kitchen table, sat a guy who looked like a Calvin Klein model, completely in the nude."

"You should have seen your face," Rachel giggled. "It was priceless."

"So I thought this guy would be one more in the long line of charming but useless bums Rachel has dated, but Cooper stuck around, and proved just as successful on Broadway as Rachel. And then he proposed, and I really couldn't be happier for her. He's just what Rachel needs. Someone who supports her, but cuts through her drama and makes her relax when she's too worked up about something. Someone who's just as ambitious and driven as she is, and who spurs her on to always be her absolute best, sometimes with praise and sometimes with criticism. Together, they make an excellent team."

Kurt paused dramatically. "Except where matchmaking is concerned."

Blaine grinned widely and nodded.

"In case you didn't know, Rachel and Cooper tried their hardest to set me up with Blaine here. Only, they did it so clumsily that it drove us apart instead of bringing us together."

Rachel pouted, and Cooper fidgeted uncomfortably, his smile slipping.

"So I told Rachel to stop meddling with our love life, and Blaine told Cooper the same, and as far as our newlyweds know, that was that. Cooper still doesn't dare to mention my name to Blaine, and Rachel avoids talking about Blaine to me."

Kurt smiled at Blaine conspiratorially. "What they don't know, though, is that behind their backs, we found our way to each other after all. Without Rachel and Cooper messing things up, we got along swimmingly and soon started dating. And two weeks ago, Blaine proposed to me, so all of you will be invited to another wedding soon."

There were a few cheers and a smattering of applause after that. Rachel and Cooper, identical shocked expressions on their faces, neither cheered nor applauded, but just stared at Kurt as though they'd never seen him before.

"So here's to Rachel and Cooper, who brought us together, in spite of their terrible matchmaking skills!"

Kurt held up his glass in a toast, and Blaine beamed and followed suit. They were copied by the other guests, who raised their glasses, too, and then drank to the health of the newlyweds.

"Kurt!" Rachel hissed.

Kurt, looking as though butter wouldn't melt in his mouth, turned to Rachel. "Yes?"

"Why didn't you tell me?" Rachel snapped. "We're supposed to be best friends!"

Kurt's eyes sparked fire. "Your bumbling attempts at matchmaking had Blaine run out into the cold after me without his coat on and contract pneumonia! I haven't forgiven you for that yet!"

Rachel clapped a hand over her mouth, her eyes filling with tears. "That's why Blaine was so ill?"

"Yes," Kurt bit back at her. "So excuse me for keeping you out of this, but I prefer my fiancé happy and healthy, thank you very much!"

Rachel was quiet for a moment. Then she was struck with a sudden thought that made her squeal and leap out of her seat to hug Kurt. "We're going to be brother and sister!"

Kurt's lips curved into a fond smile, and he hugged her back fiercely. "I like the sound of that. Forgive me?"

"If you can forgive me," Rachel sniffled. "I'm so sorry, Blaine, I didn't know."

Blaine reached for Rachel and hugged her tightly. "Don't fret… It all worked out in the end, didn't it? Just… Don't try and set people up anymore. Even if you're sure they belong together. If it's meant to be, it'll happen. They don't need a push from you."

"Cause that push could send them sprawling onto the street, where they'll be hit by a pizza delivery boy," Kurt added. "Face it, Rachel, matchmaking is not your forte. Stick to singing and acting, please."

Rachel laughed through her tears. "Yes. Yes, I will. Promise. No more meddling. Still, if I hadn't sent you to Blaine's coffee shop, you two would never have met."

Kurt raised an eyebrow. "You just married Blaine's brother, after dating him for several years. In what world would I never have met Blaine? It might have been a bit later, yes, but it would have happened eventually."

Cooper came to stand behind his wife and put his arms around her middle. "Let it go, honey. Be happy for them, and be glad that we no longer have to split up parties as 'Blaine only' and 'Kurt only'."

"Oh," Blaine pouted. "So I'll only get cake once from now on, when it's your birthday?"

Kurt laughed. "Seeing as I'm the one who makes all the birthday cakes, I might let you have two pieces after all, if you ask nicely."

Blaine beamed and pecked Kurt on the lips, and Rachel let out an excited squeak and told Cooper, "See? I told you they'd be adorable together. And they're getting married, too. Oh, I'm so glad!"

Cooper smiled. "Me too. Saves me a lot of awkwardness any time Kurt comes up in the conversation. Okay, Mrs Anderson, let's go cut our cake!"

THE END


End file.
